The manufacture of a variety of engineered structures typically relies on fastening, or otherwise structurally interrelating, a plurality of components (e.g. in the form of sheet metal). In many instances, conventionally engineered structures are assembled from components made from heritage engineering materials, e.g. steel, aluminum, titanium, etc. Such materials are advantageous in a number of respects, e.g. they are characterized by the requisite toughness for a host of engineering applications. Moreover, such heritage engineering materials can be readily amenable to being adjoined to other engineering materials. For example, threaded holes (which can accommodate screws/bolts) can be practicably machined into steel-based components.
Many modern structures rely on the implementation of composite materials that may not be as easily machinable as heritage engineering materials. For example, carbon fiber composites typically cannot be easily threaded. Accordingly, in many instances, to allow carbon fiber composite materials to be adjoined to other components, threaded inserts are embedded within carbon fiber composite materials that can more easily enable them to be adjoined to other components. For instance, holes can be drilled out of a carbon composite material, and threaded inserts that define threaded holes—typically machined from heritage engineering materials (e.g. steel, aluminum, titanium)—can be epoxy bonded within the holes drilled in the carbon composite material. The embedded threaded inserts can thereby enable another component (e.g. sheet metal made from steel) to be fastened to the carbon fiber composite.